The applicant is requesting five years of funding through the Mentored Career Development Award (K01) program to establish an independent program of substance abuse research focused on improving the identification and intervention for substance abuse, intimate partner violence (IPV) and co-occurring affective disorders (AD) in early intervention settings. The applicant?s strong background of academic, research and nurse clinical training in substance abuse, violence, family health, and health services research provides an excellent foundation for this work. The proposed training goals provide additional instruction and mentoring in 1) the complex linkage between ATOD, IPV, and AD and engagement and treatment strategies for early preventive intervention, 2) longitudinal data analysis and modeling techniques, 3) cultural issues and health disparities that complicate early intervention efforts among diverse populations, and 4) training in the ethical conduct of research. This training will prepare the applicant to pursue a research career in prevention science targeting substance abuse among women of childbearing age. In Phase I secondary data analysis will be conducted on longitudinal data provided by two large samples of postpartum women to examine the role of ATOD, IPV and AD on engagement and participation with an early intervention: home visitation. Subgroup analyses based on age, race/ethnicity and combinations of ATOD, IPV and AD will be examined. In Phase II, existing protocols for provider education and training in assessment including instrumentation, interpretation, and triage will be critically examined in two model programs. Phase III will use findings from Phases I and II as well as mentoring from experts in specific content areas to inform the development of strategies and preliminary protocols to strengthen early preventive interventions addressing these specific issues and to pilot test these protocols. Phase III will identify characteristics that impact implementation at the provider, family, and program level and will generate preliminary data to inform research and program development. The data will form the basis for a R01 application to prospectively test the effectiveness of strategies designed to improve provider education and practice related to ATOD, IPV, and AD among women of childbearing age.